Category: Asia & Pacific

Indonesia is the third largest producer of rice in the world, growing up to 50 million tons per year in the last decade. The average Indonesian consumes 441 pounds annually. But if rice is the star of most of this country’s meals, its various side dishes play delicious supporting roles. And what a cast … with 6,000 populated islands, Indonesia’s cuisine is hugely diverse. What’s more, the archipelago’s Spice-Islands reputation keeps today’s meals flavorful.

Ayam Penyet means “flattened chicken,” and it could be the tastiest bird you’ll ever eat. Preparation is simple: after marinating the pounded chicken in spices, it is fried to crispy, golden perfection. It is often served with plain steamed rice, sambal (see below), and vegetables.

Bakso is often found in street markets, a hearty meatball soup with noodles, tofu, chili, crisply onion, and sweet soy sauce. The meatballs might be made from beef, chicken, fish, or a combination of the three.

Cap Cai takes its inspiration from Chinese cuisine. The vegetable stir fry might consist of cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, onion, chili peppers, and mushrooms – all fried up with a dash of soy sauce. Some versions might include chicken or shrimp. Simple steamed rice is often served on the side.

Nasi Goring is a simple and wholesome meal of steamed rice fried with chili, shrimp paste, onion, garlic, and soy sauce. The beauty of this dish is its versatility; most anything can enhance it, from meats to eggs to cucumbers. Variations are found by region, from pale and mild to rich and spicy.

Otak Otak combines minced fish, lemongrass, kadok leaves, ginger, lime leaves, turmeric, eggs, coconut milk, and seasoning in banana leaves. That succulent package is then steamed or grilled over an open fire.

Sambal is actually a condiment, but it is on virtually every Indonesian table. Many dishes simply aren’t complete without this saucy combination of chiles, shrimp paste, lime juice, sugar, and salt.

Soto varies in its preparation by region. It is typically a mild soup of herbs, coconut milk, and either chicken or beef. Compressed cubes of rice (nasi himpit) might be served with it. Some parts of the country have spicier versions.

Tempe, though often used as an ingredient in other dishes, might be served on its own as a protein-rich substitute for meat. Its nutty flavor is enhanced when marinated in spices, lime juice, and turmeric, then fried.

Enjoy the diverse cuisine of Indonesia on our Discovery Tours’ Indonesia: Java & Bali small group tour!

Most people envision unspoiled Mongolia as two ruggedly different environments: the barren Gobi Desert and vast steppes blanketed with grassland. But these two landscapes only paint a fraction of a remarkable canvas.

To start, the Gobi—one of the last great untraveled places on earth—is unlike any desert you’ve imagined. It is kept dry by the Himalayas, which prevent rain clouds from heading northeast. The Gobi is the third largest “hot” desert in the world, after the Sahara and the Arabian, and only three percent of it is actually covered by sand. The rest is a surprisingly diverse array of ecosystems: gravelly plains, exposed rock, soaring peaks, dizzying gorges, dense forest, and babbling springs. It all thrives with a miniscule amount of annual rainfall and supports a rich variety of wildlife.  Little wonder that 13 million acres of the desert have been declared the Great Gobi Protected Area, and comprise Asia’s largest UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

Within this massive reserve, Gurvansaikhan National Park—whose name translates into “Three Beauties” for its three mountain ranges known as East, Middle, and West Beauty—hosts some remarkable desert delights. The range is completely surrounded by desert, yet a semi-permanent ice field clings to its slopes. Elsewhere, in Eagle Valley, the stunning bearded vulture, or lammergeyer, rides warm thermals where deep gorges have been carved into the desert floor. You might imagine this raptor has been around since the age of the dinosaurs. If so, then its ancestors would have witnessed the reign of Velociraptors and Tyrannosaurids here; dinosaur egg fossils and other prehistoric remains of these beasts have been uncovered in the shadow of the Flaming Cliffs, breathtaking monolithic rock formations named for their vivid red sandstone.

Perhaps the Gobi’s most mesmerizing natural wonder are its Singing Sands. You might think it magical that these towering sand dunes would whistle like desert spirits sending a message to the living. But this is a natural phenomenon, not a ghostly one. These sands can only sing because of a unique recipe found only here and a few other places on earth: Start with specifically-sized grains of sand … make sure they contain silica … and adjust the sand’s humidity to a very precise level. Add a gust of wind, and listen to the sands sing.

All told, the Gobi is a colossal, dynamic living organism that’s been known to affect climates outside its borders. Easterly winds during Mongolia’s stormy seasons can kick up Gobi dust and carry it to China, even lingering over major cities like Beijing.

Heading west from the Gobi, tiny villages of round tented huts called gers dot the green steppes. Wild horses drink from spring-fed, pristine lakes. Perhaps a nomadic family journeys across an open plain, their yak and reindeer and provisions in tow. And perhaps they are headed to Khovsgol in the far northwest, Mongolia’s green paradise of forests, mountains, and lakes.

Just over Khovsgol’s Sayan mountain range of 10,000-footers, Russia’s great Siberian wilderness—the taiga, or subarctic coniferous forest—stretches in all directions. Sacred rivers course down alpine slopes and feed some of the purest lakes in the world, Lake Khovsgol among them, known as the “dark blue pearl.” It is the largest fresh water lake in the country, and the centerpiece of a protected national park area larger than Yellowstone.

Life is simple here … both for the locals who have learned to welcome travelers without harming their cherished way of life … and for visitors who quickly learn to slow down to a peaceful pace among forests of Siberian larch trees and magenta fireweed. This is about as remote as the Gobi, perhaps even more so, the kind of place where you can hear yourself breathe amidst the whispers of a pine-scented breeze.

Who knew Mongolia was so magnificent? Discover it for yourself during our Mongolia & the Gobi Desert trip. Click here to learn more!

Like all nations, Mongolia has seen its share of violent days. After all, if you’ve got building an empire on your mind, politeness is likely to fall away. The Mongolian Empire, largely bookended by Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan, blossomed throughout the 13th century, reaching as far west as today’s Poland, south to Pakistan and South China, and east all the way to Pacific shores. It was the largest contiguous land empire in human history, comprising 16% of the earth’s land surface. Herewith, the niceties of war, Khan-style:

• Genghis Khan did not allow looting of his enemies without his prior approval, preferring to split acquired wealth among his warriors and their families.
• He codified all laws, including prohibitions against selling women, stealing, fighting among Mongols, and hunting during the breeding season.
• Genghis Khan declared religious freedom, international trade, and literacy for all, thus forming many alliances.
• Genghis Khan saw his son and heir Ogedei as courteous, generous, and charismatic. Ironically, this kept the Empire on the path originally laid by Genghis, and Ogedei Khan expanded it to its farthest points west and south.
• By the time of the third Khan’s enthronement at Karakorum in 1246, the reach of the Empire’s power was apparent: many foreign ambassadors attended Guyuk Khan’s coronation, including Pope Innocent IV, the Grand Duke of Moscow, a Seljuk Sultan, and the Emperor of India.
• Khan #4, Mongke Khan, built Buddhist monasteries, mosques, and Christian churches in the Mongol capital. One prized installation in Karakorum was a silver tree whimsically adorned with pipes that dispensed various drinks. A replica of its stands before a Chinese temple today.
• After Mongke Khan’s death, his two brothers Ariqboke and Kublai fought over the throne, stirring up a civil war in the once-united empire. Kublai emerged victorious.
• Kublai Khan, after conquering all of China, became the first non-Chinese Emperor of that country. He grew the economy there and opened more than 20,000 public schools.
• As the Mongol Empire grew, it broke into disparate factions who held allegiances to different ancestral brothers. By the time Kublai Khan died, southern expansion had reached its limit and over the following decades, the empire crumbled.

Mongolia’s national flag tells a story. In its left bar, the Soyombo stands proud, a symbol of Buddhism—the sun, moon, stars, and heavens represented in ornate geometric form. It seems simple enough, this national proclamation of united religion. But it stands for a victorious triumph after a long 20th-century struggle under Communism.

In 1924, Mongolia was home to 100,000 Buddhist monks. But as Communism took hold from neighboring Russia, 700 monasteries were closed or destroyed, Buddhist teachings were repressed and monks were killed. By 1990, 110 monks lived quietly in hidden monasteries. A year later, with the fall of Communism, that all changed. Buddhism once again rose as Mongolia’s dominant religion, and other religions such as shamanism also emerged from the shadows.

It’s a long, dark chapter, one that underscores the unwavering passion of a peaceful people. And it holds a lesson: Don’t let Genghis Khan, Kublai Kahn, and the warring ways of the Mongolian Empire fool you. Mongolians are peace-loving, big-hearted, and eager to share their culture with visitors.

Mongolians of today are not defined by borders, but by openness; it might be the wide spaces and vast steppes in which they live that lulls them into kindness. That’s why you’re likely to get invited into many a ger (the circular, tented structures they call home—again, no harsh straight lines here) for tea, mutton soup, or a cup of airag, fermented mare’s milk. Fried dumplings, called khuushuur, might also be on the menu. To be sure, Mongolian cuisine is simple, derived as it is from nomadic ways that require the most efficient use of livestock and humble harvests. And don’t be surprised if you’re invited to wash it all down with Mongolian grain vodka, a holdover from Russia’s occupation.

Seasonal festivals similarly take their cues from a rugged past. The Naadam, for instance, is perhaps Mongolia’s most famous national sport gathering. For three days each July, towns all over the country participate in Olympic-style games of strength and endurance.

Naadam is known locally as “Eriin Gurvan Naadam,” or the Three Games of Men: wrestling, horse racing, and archery. In these modern times, the Games’ title is no longer accurate as women now participate in the latter two. (The wrestling costume, an open-fronted jacket called a zodog, ensures that women do not try to enter that competition.) Naadam is a tradition that dates back 1,000 years, and the events are based on the traditional hunting culture of the Mongolian army. At the largest venue for the Games, in Ulaanbaatar, more than 600 horses stampede across the steppe for ten miles.

The Golden Eagle Festival—founded very recently, in 2000—demonstrates another symbol of military might: the event’s namesake bird. This powerful raptor has long been used to hunt for food and pelts, and each October the best falconers descend on a valley in the Altai Mountains to show off the speed, agility, and accuracy of their birds.

No doubt music plays a part in these celebrations, and most certainly at more intimate gatherings. Like so much of Mongolian culture, the country’s music has firm roots in nature and nomadism. The nation’s most famous instrument—the morin khur, a bowed stringed instrument with a boxy base and long neck—is said to produce a sound resembling a neighing horse or, even more poetically, a breeze blowing through the grasslands. Khoomei, or throat singing, is a haunting multi-tone melody produced deep in the throat. “Long song”—so named not because of a song’s length but because of each syllable’s length within the song—also plays a crucial part in the Mongolian songbook.

Experience Mongolia’s rich and welcoming culture during our Mongolia & the Gobi Desert trip. Click here to learn more!

To say that New Zealand takes your breath away doesn’t quite say enough about how staggering its beauty is. Instead, you could say New Zealand stirs the soul. It makes your spirit soar. It fills you with a stupefying wonder for all that is divine and powerful. Well, you get our point. And you’re sure to agree that words simply cannot express the effect that this spectacular country has on everyone who visits.

It’s fair to say that, before director Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy—which was filmed amidst its scenic splendor—New Zealand wasn’t on the radar of many travelers. Now, we can’t get enough of it. So we’re happy to share with you six of our favorite places, the ones that are sure to take your breath away and even stir your soul. Here’s what they shared:

THE NORTH ISLAND: VOLCANIC SPLENDOR

Rotorua

A rocky plateau sits just above the city of Rotorua. An entirely different world bubbles and gurgles upon this mound:  the geothermal area of Whakarewarewa. Geysers erupt, hot springs steam and mud pools boil in this otherworldly landscape.

Whakarewarewa lies within the North Island’s Taupo Volcanic Zone, and it sports some 65 geyser vents and 500 hot-spring pools. Seven of the geysers are active, with Pohutu (Maori for “explosion”) erupting up to 100 feet tall about once an hour. The most fascinating thing about several of these active spouts is that they often erupt in concert—first the Prince of Wales Feathers Geyser, then Pohutu, followed by Waikorohihi. The reason for this symphony is that they all protrude from a common fissure regulated by a highly complex system of pressure and release.

Huka Falls

Rushing down the Waikato River in a torrent, the Huka Falls flow from Lake Taupo, the largest lake in New Zealand. The river, as it leaves the lake, is up to 300 feet from one bank to another. Then, its waters are funneled into a dramatic canyon that’s just 50 feet wide. The result is a surge of water—often 58,000 gallons per second—through a very tight space. The river first courses over smaller falls of about 25 feet, followed by a more dramatic 35-foot drop into a beautiful (and very loud!) tree-ringed basin.

Tongariro National Park

The oldest national park in New Zealand and the fourth one established in the world, Tongariro offers spectacular vistas of snow-capped peaks, dense forests, open plains, and pristine rivers. It’s important to New Zealanders because it is one of only 28 “mixed” UNESCO World Heritage Sites, protected by the United Nations organization for both their natural beauty and their cultural heritage. You won’t have to look far to understand why this unspoiled and majestic land is worth protecting. It is a medley of nature’s best, and its wide sweeping vistas made for a stunning setting for Peter Jackson’s movies.

The park was in fact declared sacred in 1887 by paramount Maori chief Te Heuheu Tukino IV. Certainly, he wanted to protect the wilderness for future generations. But he also made his declaration in order to protect the many Maori religious sites within the park. The native islanders consider three of its mountain summits—Tongariro, Ngauruhoe, and Ruapehu—as tapu, or sacred.

THE SOUTH ISLAND: DAZZLING ICE AND WATER

Franz Josef Glacier

Even the scenic road to Franz Josef Glacier is a wonder to behold. It traces the Clutha River Valley to the pretty town of Wanaka on the pristine waters of Lake Wanaka. From here, the mighty Clutha River has cut stunning glacial terraces into the landscape. Today, the Franz Josef Glacier is part of what’s left of the glacial system that carved this landscape. At 7.5 miles long, it is unique in that it has crawled toward the sea from the heights of the Southern Alps through the lush greenery of a rainforest.

The first Europeans laid eyes on this massive icefield in 1859, but it was a German explorer who named it after the Austrian emperor six years later. Of course, the Maori, New Zealand’s indigenous people, were intimately familiar with it and called it Ka Roimata o Hinehukatere, which means “the tears of Hinehukatere.” The name comes from a local legend in which Hinehukatere persuaded her lover, Wawe, to climb in these mountains with her. After an avalanche buried him alive, her countless tears flowed down the mountain and froze to form the glacier we see today.

Milford Sound

Rudyard Kipling called Milford Sound the eighth wonder of the world. So it comes as no surprise that it has often been ranked as the world’s top travel destination. The sound is a magnificent fjord flowing in from the Tasman Sea. Pristine waters glimmer at the foot of vertical, soaring mountains that rise up to 3,900 feet on either side. One of its peaks, called The Elephant, is shaped like a pachyderm’s head. Another, The Lion, resembles a crouching jungle cat.

Two permanent waterfalls cascade down sheer cliffs to plunge into the waters of the fjord: Lady Bowen Falls and Stirling Falls. After heavy rain, however, any number of waterfalls could suddenly appear from above and drape the forested cliffs in watery curtains. Lucky for us, it rains a lot in Milford Sound. With rain falling 182 day each year on average, it is one of the wettest places on Earth.

Lake Wakatipu

New Zealand’s longest lake (50 miles), and the world’s third largest in area, Lake Wakatipu is overlooked by the aptly named Remarkables mountain range. From the air, it is shaped like a sharp-curved “S.” At its greatest depth (an astounding 1,020 feet), its floor lies below sea level.

The setting of Lake Wakatipu is truly spectacular, and the people of Queenstown are fortunate to be right in its midst. Our Wonders of New Zealand spends three nights in this charming city, giving you ample time to take in the alpine beauty. A cruise aboard the TSS Earnslaw takes you along the lake’s shores to admire the vistas. Keep your eyes open for Mallards, black-billed gulls, and pied shags, a type of cormorant native to the region. If the lake looks familiar, that’s because it was used as a backdrop for several scenes in The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Discover the magnificent beauty of New Zealand on a Gate 1 Travel escorted tour!